Apple testing hundreds of iPhone apps for tablet

Apple is reportedly testing approximately 200 different iPhone OS 3.2-based applications on its Cupertino, Calif. campus in anticipation of Wednesday's expected announcement of its much-rumored tablet device. Mobile application analytics provider Flurry reports it has identified approximately 50 devices that match the characteristics of the Apple tablet, placing the devices on the computing giant's campus--Flurry adds the devices are trialing a multitude of applications, dominated by games, entertainment, ebooks and lifestyle apps. "With a larger screen, more memory, multi-touch and multi-tasking expected, games will play better than ever on Apple handheld devices," Flurry notes.

Flurry also points out the Apple hardware in question runs iPhone OS 3.2, which Apple has yet to officially release--at present, iPhone and iPod touch devices are running iPhone OS 3.1.2. In the past, Apple has released OS upgrades just prior to issuing new hardware. Flurry adds that the testing patterns indicate Apple is seeking to leverage the 130,000-plus iPhone applications already available in the App Store for the new tablet. The firm also points out it has detected a plethora of applications emphasizing restaurant information, movie showtimes, travel guides and other location-specific information, lending credence to theories the tablet will be thin, light and designed for portability.

Asked by a reader how Flurry can be so sure Apple is testing tablets, Flurry VP of marketing Peter Farago responded "If this were an iPhone we were looking at, the hardware would tell us when we ask it (via the software). So we can rule out that this is an iPhone. Also, we already see verified iPhone devices testing OS 4.0 and these leave (Apple's Cupertino, CA) campus, whereas this device does not. This makes sense given the secrecy around the new tablet device as the launch event nears... The apps being tested match up to what the devices is supposed to feature (e.g., news, books, etc.). We cannot share further detail here due to Terms of Service agreements we have with customers that use our service, but feel that if you were able to see the data we see, at the level of granularity, it would be clear to you as well."

In related news, The Wall Street Journal reports Apple is in talks with CBS Corp., Walt Disney Co. and other studios about offering subscriptions to their content, adding that videogame publisher Electronic Arts is also working to expand the tablet's gaming potential. Sources indicate Apple is expected to offer publishers a 70 percent royalty on content downloaded to the tablet, double the 35 percent rate established by online retail giant Amazon.com for its Kindle ereader device. 

For more on Apple's tablet tests:
- read this Flurry blog entry

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